The Japonista Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen

Welcome to the Japonista Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen: a reference to the deities, ideas, schools, objects and arts of Japanese Buddhism, written for collectors and for anyone who wishes to understand the sacred art of Japan. Each entry explains who a figure is, how to recognise it, where it appears in Japanese art and what a collector should look for, with links to related entries and to pieces in our collection.

Begin with How to Read a Buddhist Statue and The Four Ranks of Buddhist Deities, or browse by family below. An A to Z index follows.

Foundations

The essentials: what Buddhist sculpture is, how it developed and who made it.

• Buddhist Statues and Sacred Art: Why Japanese Buddhist sculpture is collected, and how to begin.
• Buddhism in Japan: A Short History: From the sixth-century arrival to the Meiji separation of gods and buddhas.
• The Four Ranks of Buddhist Deities: Buddhas, bodhisattvas, wisdom kings and devas, and how to tell them apart.
• Periods of Japanese Buddhist Sculpture: Asuka to Meiji: how style dates a figure.
• Busshi: The Buddhist Sculptors of Japan: Tori, Jōchō, Unkei, Kaikei and the workshops that followed.

Buddhas

The fully awakened ones, at the centre of every altar.

• Nyorai: The Buddhas: The fully awakened ones, in plain robes, at the centre of the altar.
• Shaka Nyorai: The historical Buddha, teacher of this age.
• Amida Nyorai: Buddha of Infinite Light, who welcomes the faithful to the Western Pure Land.
• Yakushi Nyorai: The Medicine Buddha, holding a jar of healing.
• Dainichi Nyorai: The cosmic Buddha of esoteric teaching, crowned like a prince.
• Birushana: The Great Buddha of Nara: The radiant Buddha of the Kegon tradition, enthroned at Tōdaiji.
• The Thirteen Buddhas (Jūsanbutsu): The memorial deities who preside over the rites for the dead.

Bodhisattvas

Beings of compassion who remain in the world to help.

• Bosatsu: The Bodhisattvas: Beings of compassion, crowned and jewelled, who stay to help the world.
• Kannon Bosatsu: Bodhisattva of compassion who hears the cries of the world.
• The Forms of Kannon: The Six Kannon and the Thirty-three, and how to identify each.
• Senju Kannon: Thousand-armed Kannon, reaching every being at once.
• Jūichimen Kannon: Eleven-headed Kannon, looking in every direction.
• Nyoirin Kannon: Kannon of the wish-granting jewel and the wheel of teaching.
• Batō Kannon: Horse-headed Kannon, fierce protector of animals and travellers.
• Juntei Kannon: Kannon as the mother of buddhas, with eighteen arms.
• Jizō Bosatsu: The monk-like guardian of children, travellers and souls in transit.
• Monju Bosatsu: Bodhisattva of wisdom, with a sword and a lion.
• Fugen Bosatsu: Bodhisattva of practice, riding a white elephant.
• Seishi Bosatsu: Bodhisattva of wisdom at the side of Amida.
• Kokūzō Bosatsu: Bodhisattva of boundless memory and the void.
• Miroku Bosatsu: The Buddha of the future, waiting in contemplation.

Wisdom Kings

The fierce protectors of esoteric Buddhism.

• Myōō: The Wisdom Kings: Wrathful protectors whose fury is compassion in action.
• Godai Myōō: The Five Great Kings: Fudō and the four kings of the directions, a set of esoteric guardians.
• Fudō Myōō: The Immovable One, with sword, rope and a halo of flame.
• Gōzanze Myōō: King of the East, who tramples the gods of desire.
• Gundari Myōō: King of the South, wreathed in serpents.
• Daiitoku Myōō: King of the West, six-legged, riding a water buffalo.
• Kongōyasha Myōō: King of the North, devourer of impurity.
• Aizen Myōō: King of passion, red-bodied, who turns desire into awakening.
• Kujaku Myōō: The gentle wisdom king who rides a peacock.
• Ususama Myōō: The wisdom king who purifies what is unclean.

Heavenly Deities and Guardians

Devas of Indian origin who guard the teaching and grant blessings.

• Ten: The Heavenly Deities: Devas of Indian origin who guard the teaching and grant blessings.
• Shitennō: The Four Heavenly Kings: Armoured guardians of the four directions.
• Bishamonten: Guardian of the north and giver of fortune, holding a pagoda.
• Niō: The Gate Guardians: The open-mouthed and closed-mouthed giants at the temple gate.
• Bonten and Taishakuten: Brahmā and Indra, the first gods to honour the Buddha.
• Benzaiten: Goddess of music, eloquence and water, with her lute.
• Daikokuten: God of the kitchen and plenty, standing on rice bales.
• Kangiten: The elephant-headed god of bliss and obstacles removed.
• Kichijōten: Goddess of good fortune and beauty.
• Marishiten: Goddess of light and invisibility, patron of warriors.
• Idaten: The swift guardian of monasteries and their kitchens.
• Kishimojin: The demoness who became the protector of children.
• Enma and the Ten Kings of Hell: The judges of the dead, and the paintings that show their courts.
• Jūni Shinshō: The Twelve Generals: The armoured protectors of Yakushi and of the twelve zodiac animals.
• Hachibushū and Ashura: The eight legions converted to the teaching, led in fame by Ashura.
• Fūjin and Raijin: The gods of wind and thunder, in sculpture and on screens.
• Hiten and Tennyo: Celestial Beings: Flying musicians and heavenly maidens of the Buddhist sky.
• Karyōbinga: The bird of paradise with a human face and a perfect voice.

The Seven Lucky Gods

The company of good fortune who sail in on the treasure ship.

• Shichifukujin: The seven gods of good fortune, who arrive by treasure ship at New Year.
• Ebisu: God of fishermen and merchants, with rod and sea bream.
• Hotei: The laughing monk with a sack of plenty.
• Fukurokuju: The long-headed god of happiness, wealth and long life.
• Jurōjin: The old sage of longevity, with a deer and a scroll.

Kami and Buddhas Together

A thousand years of shared shrines, avatars and mountain practice.

• Shinbutsu Shūgō: Gods and Buddhas as One: A thousand years of shared shrines and temples, and the Meiji separation.
• Gongen: Buddhas in the Form of Kami: Avatars such as Zaō Gongen and Akiba Gongen.
• Hachiman: God of archery and war, honoured as a great bodhisattva.
• Inari and Dakiniten: The rice god, the fox messenger and the Buddhist goddess who rides it.
• Shugendō: The Mountain Ascetics: The yamabushi, their founder En no Gyōja and their sacred peaks.

Patriarchs and Saints

The disciples, founders and holy men of Japanese Buddhism.

• Rakan: The Arhats: The Buddha's disciples who reached awakening, in sets of sixteen and five hundred.
• Daruma (Bodhidharma): The founder of Zen, and the round red doll that bears his name.
• Shōtoku Taishi: The prince who championed Buddhism in early Japan.
• Kōbō Daishi (Kūkai): Founder of Shingon and patron saint of the Shikoku pilgrimage.
• Dengyō Daishi (Saichō): Founder of Tendai on Mount Hiei.
• Hōnen and Shinran: The teachers of the Pure Land, who placed salvation in Amida's vow.
• Nichiren: The prophet of the Lotus Sutra and its sacred title.
• En no Gyōja: The legendary founder of mountain asceticism.

Zen

The meditation schools and the arts they inspired.

• Zen Buddhism in Japan: Rinzai, Sōtō and Ōbaku: the meditation schools and their arts.
• Zenga: Painting by Zen Monks: Ink paintings of Hakuin, Sengai and their successors.
• Ensō: The Zen Circle: A single brushstroke as a portrait of the mind.
• Bokuseki: Zen Calligraphy: The ink traces of Zen masters, hung in the tea room.
• The Ten Ox-herding Pictures: A path to awakening told in ten images.
• Ikkyū Sōjun: The eccentric poet-monk of Daitokuji.
• Zen Gardens: Dry landscapes of rock and raked gravel.
• Zen and Tea: How the tea ceremony grew from Zen temples.

Schools and Lineages

The great traditions of Japanese Buddhism.

• The Nara Schools: Kegon, Hossō and Ritsu, the oldest lineages of Japanese Buddhism.
• Tendai Buddhism: The Lotus Sutra school of Mount Hiei.
• Mikkyō: Esoteric Buddhism: Shingon and Tendai esotericism, mandalas and secret rites.
• Pure Land Buddhism: Jōdo and Jōdo Shinshū, devotion to Amida.
• Nichiren Buddhism: The schools founded on the Lotus Sutra and its title.

Ideas, Rites and Pilgrimage

Mandalas, sutras, the realms of rebirth and the roads of the pilgrim.

• Goma: The Fire Ritual: The esoteric offering in which delusion is burned.
• The Two Realms Mandala: The Womb and Diamond mandalas of esoteric Buddhism.
• Triads (Sanzon): A buddha and two attendants, and how to name each set.
• Rokudō: The Six Realms: The cycle of rebirth, and the paintings that map it.
• Raigō: Amida's Descent: Paintings and sculpture of Amida coming to welcome the dying.
• The Lotus Sutra: The most influential scripture in Japan, and its imagery.
• The Heart Sutra and Shakyō: The shortest great sutra, and the practice of copying it by hand.
• Pilgrimages of Japan: The Kannon circuits and the eighty-eight temples of Shikoku.
• Saikoku Thirty-three Kannon Pilgrimage: Japan's oldest pilgrimage, through the Kansai.
• Bandō Thirty-three Kannon Pilgrimage: The eastern circuit through Kantō.
• Chichibu Thirty-four Kannon Pilgrimage: A walking circuit in the hills of Saitama.
• Shikoku Eighty-eight Temple Pilgrimage: The circuit in the footsteps of Kōbō Daishi.

Reading a Statue

Gestures, attributes, postures and the making of images.

• How to Read a Buddhist Statue: Rank, gesture, attribute, posture and seat, in five steps.
• Mudrā: Hand Gestures: The hand positions that name a figure and its message.
• Attributes and Implements: Jewel, lotus, staff, vajra, sword and rope.
• Postures and Seats: Seated, standing, royal ease and the lotus throne.
• Halos and Pedestals: Kōhai and daiza: the frame and the throne.
• Marks of the Buddha: Ushnīsha, ūrṇā, long ears and curled hair.
• Materials and Making: Wood, lacquer, bronze, clay and stone, and how statues were built.
• Gyokugan: Crystal Eyes: The inlaid eyes that brought Kamakura sculpture to life.

Altars, Shrines and Ritual Objects

The furnishings of the temple and the household altar.

• Zushi: Portable Shrines: Cabinets with doors that house a sacred figure.
• Butsuga: Buddhist Painting: Hanging scrolls of deities, mandalas and paradise.
• Juzu: Prayer Beads: One hundred and eight beads, and their school variations.
• Vajra and Esoteric Ritual Implements: Kongōsho, bells and the altar of esoteric rites.
• Bells, Gongs and the Wooden Fish: Rin, kei, mokugyo and the great temple bell.
• Glossary of Buddhist Terms: Words a collector meets, from honzon to tomobako.
• Glossary of Buddhist Objects: The altar, its furnishings and their names.
• What Is a Butsudan?: The household altar and its meaning.
• Types of Butsudan: Schools, styles and regional forms.
• Butsudan Components: The parts and furnishings of the altar.
• Installing a Butsudan: Placing and setting up an altar.
• Incense, Candles and Offerings: What is offered, and how.
• Caring for a Butsudan: Keeping lacquer and gold in good order.
• Shipping a Butsudan: Moving altars and implements safely.
• Butsudan Questions Answered: What collectors and families ask.
• Butsudan and Kamidana: The Buddhist altar and the Shinto shelf compared.

Beyond Japan

The Buddhist art of China, Gandhāra and the Himalaya.

• Chinese Buddhist Art: Cave temples, gilt bronzes and the Guanyin of later dynasties.
• Gandhāra Buddhist Art: Grey schist and Hellenistic drapery on the Silk Road.
• Tibetan and Himalayan Buddhist Art: Gilt bronzes, thangka and the Vajrayāna pantheon.

For the Collector

Buying, caring for and living with sacred art.

• How to Buy a Buddhist Statue: Identification, condition, period and paperwork, step by step.
• The Ethics of Collecting Sacred Art: Provenance, respect and stewardship.
• Condition and Restoration: Reading repairs, regilding and replacement parts honestly.
• Caring for Buddhist Statues: Light, humidity, dust and handling.
• Displaying Sacred Art at Home: Height, orientation and the respectful setting.

Further reading

• The Quiet That Endures: why collect Japanese Buddhist statues
• Woods of the Buddha
• Gold on the Buddha: reading gilt surfaces
• Displaying a Buddhist statue at home
• Butsugu: the implements of the household altar
• The kamidana
• Goshuin, omamori and ema
• Why collect celestial attendants
• Kōro: incense burners
• Glossary of Buddhist statue terms
• Caring for hanging scrolls
• Glossary of box inscriptions

A to Z index

A: Aizen Myōō · Amida Nyorai · Attributes and Implements

B: Bandō Thirty-three Kannon Pilgrimage · Batō Kannon · Bells, Gongs and the Wooden Fish · Benzaiten · Birushana: The Great Buddha of Nara · Bishamonten · Bokuseki: Zen Calligraphy · Bonten and Taishakuten · Bosatsu: The Bodhisattvas · Buddhism in Japan: A Short History · Buddhist Statues and Sacred Art · Busshi: The Buddhist Sculptors of Japan · Butsudan and Kamidana · Butsudan Components · Butsudan Questions Answered · Butsuga: Buddhist Painting

C: Caring for a Butsudan · Caring for Buddhist Statues · Chichibu Thirty-four Kannon Pilgrimage · Chinese Buddhist Art · Condition and Restoration

D: Daiitoku Myōō · Daikokuten · Dainichi Nyorai · Daruma (Bodhidharma) · Dengyō Daishi (Saichō) · Displaying Sacred Art at Home

E: Ebisu · En no Gyōja · Enma and the Ten Kings of Hell · Ensō: The Zen Circle · The Ethics of Collecting Sacred Art

F: The Forms of Kannon · The Four Ranks of Buddhist Deities · Fudō Myōō · Fugen Bosatsu · Fūjin and Raijin · Fukurokuju

G: Gandhāra Buddhist Art · Glossary of Buddhist Objects · Glossary of Buddhist Terms · Godai Myōō: The Five Great Kings · Goma: The Fire Ritual · Gongen: Buddhas in the Form of Kami · Gōzanze Myōō · Gundari Myōō · Gyokugan: Crystal Eyes

H: Hachibushū and Ashura · Hachiman · Halos and Pedestals · The Heart Sutra and Shakyō · Hiten and Tennyo: Celestial Beings · Hōnen and Shinran · Hotei · How to Buy a Buddhist Statue · How to Read a Buddhist Statue

I: Idaten · Ikkyū Sōjun · Inari and Dakiniten · Incense, Candles and Offerings · Installing a Butsudan

J: Jizō Bosatsu · Jūichimen Kannon · Jūni Shinshō: The Twelve Generals · Juntei Kannon · Jurōjin · Juzu: Prayer Beads

K: Kangiten · Kannon Bosatsu · Karyōbinga · Kichijōten · Kishimojin · Kōbō Daishi (Kūkai) · Kokūzō Bosatsu · Kongōyasha Myōō · Kujaku Myōō

L: The Lotus Sutra

M: Marishiten · Marks of the Buddha · Materials and Making · Mikkyō: Esoteric Buddhism · Miroku Bosatsu · Monju Bosatsu · Mudrā: Hand Gestures · Myōō: The Wisdom Kings

N: The Nara Schools · Nichiren · Nichiren Buddhism · Niō: The Gate Guardians · Nyoirin Kannon · Nyorai: The Buddhas

P: Periods of Japanese Buddhist Sculpture · Pilgrimages of Japan · Postures and Seats · Pure Land Buddhism

R: Raigō: Amida's Descent · Rakan: The Arhats · Rokudō: The Six Realms

S: Saikoku Thirty-three Kannon Pilgrimage · Seishi Bosatsu · Senju Kannon · Shaka Nyorai · Shichifukujin · Shikoku Eighty-eight Temple Pilgrimage · Shinbutsu Shūgō: Gods and Buddhas as One · Shipping a Butsudan · Shitennō: The Four Heavenly Kings · Shōtoku Taishi · Shugendō: The Mountain Ascetics

T: The Ten Ox-herding Pictures · Ten: The Heavenly Deities · Tendai Buddhism · The Thirteen Buddhas (Jūsanbutsu) · Tibetan and Himalayan Buddhist Art · Triads (Sanzon) · The Two Realms Mandala · Types of Butsudan

U: Ususama Myōō

V: Vajra and Esoteric Ritual Implements

W: What Is a Butsudan?

Y: Yakushi Nyorai

Z: Zen and Tea · Zen Buddhism in Japan · Zen Gardens · Zenga: Painting by Zen Monks · Zushi: Portable Shrines

In the collection

Browse Buddhist Statues and Sacred Art, altars and religious objects, scrolls and paintings and okimono and figurines. Every piece is examined in Japan and covered by our authenticity guarantee. For a figure we do not hold, our collector concierge can search Japan on your behalf, and our curator desk replies within one to three business days.